The New Revolution: Bob Grant Talks PrEP in Special Issue of Positively Aware

by Robert Grant, MD, MPH (via Positively Aware's recent "Let's Talk about PrEP" issue)  

"PrEP is a proven concept. A single tablet that contains two medications originally approved to treat HIV/AIDS, tenofovir and emtricitabine (brand name “Truvada” in the United States), was approved to prevent sexual transmission of HIV by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in July 2012. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have issued guidelines for the use of PrEP. The medication is already available in generic form to people living in the poorest countries of the world."

 

Antiretroviral therapy has revolutionized care for people living with HIV/AIDS by prolonging life and restoring health, preventing transmission to uninfected partners, and preventing tuberculosis disease. These same medications can be taken by HIV-negative people with the goal of staying free of HIV. The combination of highly active antiretroviral interventions for both HIV prevention and treatment has led to unprecedented optimism about the prospect of ending AIDS.

The preventive use of anti-HIV medicines by HIV-negative people is called post-exposure prophylaxis (or PEP) if the medicines are started after sex or a needle stick that could lead to HIV transmission. Pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, is when medicines are used before and after possible exposures to HIV infection.

Read the rest here.

[VIDEO] Voices of Choice - Garland from Chicago Talks About Being in the iPrEx Open Label PrEP Trial

In the video below, Garland from Chicago discusses his participation in the iPrEx Open Label Study and taking Truvada as a way to prevent HIV infection. The iPrEx trial was the first study to show that an antiretroviral drug (ARV) - normally used to treat people living with HIV - could also be used to prevent HIV among people who are HIV-negative.

In July of 2012, the FDA approved the ARV drug Truvada for the prevention of HIV.

Thanks to the iPrEx team, My PrEP Experience will be sharing a number of videos from iPrEx study participants over the coming days and weeks. Check back often, or like our partner Project RSP! on FB and follow along with all the new videos that way.

If YOU are taking Truvada as PrEP, we'd love to hear your story. You can share your experience in a video, or you can write something up. Whatever you want to do - we want to hear your experience - whether taking Truvada as PrEP was a good experience or a bad experience - or anywhere in between. Email myprepexperience@gmail.com and let us know!

Paying for PrEP - Helpful Info for People/Providers

by Enid Vazquez, via Positively Aware's recent (an excellent resource) "Let's Talk about PrEP" issue.  

And be sure to check out this new fact sheet on payment strategies for both PrEP and PEP published August 21 by NASTAD:  "Pharmaceutical Patient Assistance Programs and Co-Payment Assistance Programs for PrEP and PEP."

Asked if he’s had any problems getting insurance companies to pay for HIV PrEP, HIV specialist Tony Mills, MD, of Los Angeles, replied, “None so far.”

In Chicago, Michelle M. Agnoli, RN, with the Midwest AIDS Training and Education Center (MATEC), said, “There’ve been no problems that I’m aware of. None.”

And Shannon Weber, MSW, of the Bay Area Perinatal HIV Center (BAPAC) out of San Francisco General Hospital, said, “I’ve only heard one report of it not being approved. Generally I’m hearing positive responses about access.”

But concern about how to pay for PrEP is the number one question Weber gets when she makes presentations about the new HIV prevention therapy. Doctors will tell her “it’s hard to get [insurance] coverage,” yet when she asks them if they have prescribed PrEP, none of them have.

Learn more about paying for PrEP here.

 

 

From Personal to Professional: Alan Johnson writes about his PrEP experience

 by Alan Johnson, MPH, excerpt from Positively Aware's recent "Let's Talk about PrEP" issue  

"I attribute my high adherence rate to knowing that PrEP will only work if you take it. I always carry a few doses with me and my iPhone alarm always reminds me to take my medication."

I first heard about PrEP at a community meeting a couple of years ago, after it was shown to be an effective prevention method in human studies. I decided to look into PrEP further when the FDA approved the prescription drug Truvada as prevention for those who are at high risk for acquiring HIV. In yet another community meeting soon after FDA approval, I learned that some insurance companies were planning to cover most of the cost for treatment. I also learned that patient assistance programs from the maker of the drug, Gilead Sciences, have been extended to those taking Truvada as PrEP. 

Though I have a background in public health (primarily sexual health research and direct prevention and care services), I found that the more I heard about PrEP, the more questions I had.

If I was interested in actually taking PrEP, how would I afford it?

Was I even truly at “high risk” for acquiring HIV?

Would I have adverse reactions to the meds?

How would I overcome my internalized fear and the stigma associated with actually reaching the pharmacy counter and receiving the prescription?

What if someone I know sees the Truvada label laying around my apartment and Googles it?

Would they think that I was HIV-positive?

Read the rest here. 

MUST READ: Let's Talk About PrEP - Special Issue on PrEP from Positively Aware

Check out this special summer issue from Positively Aware on PrEP. Contents include personal stories from real people using PrEP, updates from the world's leading scientists, and tips on how to pay for PrEP. Good stuff, must read!

Click here to access the full issue.